Whether you’re launching a new website or want to redesign your existing business website, the decisions you make will determine whether the design is great or a flop. Since you want a design that’s going to look excellent and help your business achieve its goals online, I’ve put together a list of the top tips to ensure your new design is a winner:

 Prioritize Mobile

Many websites now get more than half of their traffic from mobile devices. Because so many people are using devices with smaller screens as their primary way to get online, it’s important to have a website that’s going to be easy for them to access. The best method for handling mobile screens of all sizes is to use a responsive design. Going with this type of design will make your site work properly on any screen size in 2016 and beyond.

Have a Clear Goal for Each Page

Not only do you want your business website to look great, but it should also provide an excellent experience for visitors. One obstacle that can prevent a visitor from having a great experience is a website that’s difficult to navigate. You can avoid that type of issue by ensuring that every page added to your site has a clear goal. Additionally, pages should include a relevant call to action based on what you want visitors to do.

When in Doubt, Go with Less

There are a lot of decisions that will need to be made during the design process. Having to make so many decisions is why plenty of websites end up with far more design elements than they need. That’s why the best rule of thumb to follow is whenever you’re on the fence about whether or not an addition is necessary, your best bet is to leave it out. The result will be a cleaner design that visitors can navigate with ease.

Design with SEO in Mind

While building links and other off-page strategies are an important part of SEO, getting on-page right provides a foundation for success. You can ensure that all essential SEO elements are included by keeping this practice in mind throughout the design process.

Optimize Images

Images and pictures are a great way to make a website more engaging. While it’s worth investing resources in getting quality images, it’s equally important to optimize them before adding them to a design. Optimizing an image means giving it an SEO friendly filename, as well as compressing its size. Compressing an image file will ensure it doesn’t slow down the amount of time it takes for your site to load.